“I remember walking out to my car to put away my equipment and then everything starts to get a little hazy,” I admitted.
“Where does your memory start to come back in?” Brett asked.
“I remember my attacker telling me he had to kill me because of some prophecy, that he was surprised I didn’t have any power.” I carefully watched her reaction. The set of her mouth tightened slightly but she kept her face calm and collected, as if I had just told her the sky was blue.
She didn’t say anything so I continued. “He said that I would wake The Lady and they couldn’t let that happen. But I have no clue what he’s talking about. How does this have anything to do with me?” I started tearing up. I took a deep breath that rattled on my lips and gathered my senses.
“The next thing I remember is hearing Robert’s voice and then I was warm all over, from the inside out. I thought I was dying and then…” I explained, suddenly realizing I was telling a complete stranger about my miracle near-death experience when I didn’t even know what had happened. I also had the distinct feeling that no one but Robert would quite understand the raw sensation that had passed between us.
“And then?” Brett asked. She offered a patient nod as she waited for me to continue.
“And then, it goes fuzzy again,” I lied.
“It’s okay, try not to push yourself to remember. Your mind is trying to protect you.” She placed her hand on my shoulder. “I’m going to get changed real quick. The wedding is mostly over anyway. Just relax for a bit and when you’re ready I’ll walk you out.”
“Thanks again, for the clothes.”
“Of course.” Brett stood up and walked across the room to her large walk-in closet.
I sat on the bed alone for a few minutes, thinking everything over. So it wasn’t a habit of Robert’s to save every damsel in distress, but what did that mean for me? He wasn’t even going to come back up and talk to me. I might not ever get to see him again. And then what, was I supposed to just forget him? Forget about him saving me and go on with my life like nothing ever happened?
I wasn’t exactly sure how long I had been sitting alone. Time didn’t seem to hold the same value, what with everything going on. I figured it hadn’t been too long though because Brett still hadn’t returned from the closet. I got the feeling she was trying to give us both some privacy, me with my thoughts and her to analyze every word I had just said.
I was too restless to sit still any longer so I got up and walked over to the window. It overlooked the courtyard where the reception was taking place. Brett was right about the wedding being mostly over; it was almost one in the morning and nearly all of the guests had departed. The gathering looked different from above: the white lights strung up everywhere twinkled like stars in the night sky. A light mist had blown in from the ocean and clung to the air, making the courtyard look utterly enchanting.
The bride and groom were tightly embraced on the dance floor along with a few other couples, completely oblivious to the time. The wait staff floated effortlessly from table to table collecting plates, cups and silverware. I felt like I was watching something right off the silver screen, everything felt so surreal.
“Violet?” Brett said behind me.
I turned around. Brett had changed into jeans and a long sleeve, black V-neck shirt that had a pretty rhinestone design on the front. She was noticeably shorter in the ballet flats she now wore. Much closer to my height, like I’d originally thought.
“I think I’m ready to go home now,” I said, though I bit my lip, unsure. I didn’t want to leave if there was a chance I might get to talk to Robert, but nothing here felt real and I just wanted to be back home where everything was familiar.
“Alright,” Brett said, taking the glass of water from me and putting it on the desk next to the window.
Brett walked me out of the room, down the staircase and out the front door. We walked in silence to my car. When we got about ten feet away I saw no trace of a bloodstain. I blinked in wide-eyed confusion, finding no sign I’d been attacked at all.
“What happened to all the blood?” I asked, moving faster toward the car.
“It’s been cleaned up,” Brett said nonchalantly.
“Already? That was fast.”
“We’re very careful.”
“Hmm.” So this wasn’t the first time they had to clean up a mess.
“Violet, I’m terribly sorry for everything that’s happened to you tonight. I know you’re confused and want answers but for now you’re just going to have to trust us. We’ll find out what we can but for your own safety, you can’t say anything to anyone about what happened to you tonight,” Brett informed me as politely as she could manage given the warning in her voice.
“And what am I supposed to say about all the cuts and bruises? People are going to notice,” I replied. My shoulders slumped in defeat as I realized I wouldn’t be getting any answers tonight.
“Tell them you were mugged but you didn’t get a good look at the guy,” she lied without skipping a beat.
“I guess you guys think of everything.”
“Indeed we do.”
Tired and hurt that they wouldn’t trust me, I felt the tears welling up and blurring my vision. I refused to let Brett see me cry so kept my eyes on the car as I unlocked the door.
“I’ll keep Robert’s secret. Not for you or for him but because I owe him that much for saving my life,” I said, buckling my seatbelt and drowning out whatever response she might have made with the flaring of the ignition.
I drove off without looking back. I felt a little guilty for being so rude when Brett had been so nice and helpful. But I wanted answers, and one way or another, I was going to get them.
Chapter 4
I sat at my desk replaying everything in my head over and over again. My unanswered questions gnawing at me as I thought about Robert. How could he just leave without so much as a word?
After I drove off, leaving Brett in the street, everything turned into a blur. It was like my mind shut down after I left the Maxwell estate, overwhelmed by the shock of what had happened. I vaguely remembered making it to my bed that night and Harriet, my next door neighbor and adopted grandmother, waking me up the next morning. She made me the most awful-tasting tea and applied a balm to my wounds, including the scars on my torso. At the time I didn’t have the energy to ask her what she was doing in my house or how she knew that I was hurt. I convinced myself she must have seen me come in on Saturday night. I was in and out of sleep the rest of the day and each time I woke up Harriet gave me more tea.
“Oh, Violet,” Becky’s voice chimed, bringing me back to reality. I blinked a moment, remembering I was in my office and not still living through that terrible night. “Man do I have a story for you.” She walked up to my desk and sat on the corner.
“What’s up?” I asked, not looking at her and trying to keep my hair across my face so she wouldn’t see the cuts and bruises.
“So, you know that guy I met at the wedding?”
“Yeah what about him?” I started rifling through my desk drawers as another reason not to look up at her.
“Well, I ended up hanging out with him the rest of the weekend.”
“Hung out?” I spared a glance at Becky to furrow my brow at her. She wasn’t the type of girl to just ‘hang out’ with a guy.
“Yes,” she shot back, her irritation apparently blinding her to my appearance. I returned my glance to the drawers. “Just because we hung out in bed all weekend doesn’t mean we didn’t spend quality time together.” She giggled.